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Rubin-Blum M, Makovsky Y, Rahav E, Belkin N, Antler G, Sisma-Ventura G, Herut B. Active microbial communities facilitate carbon turnover in brine pools found in the deep Southeastern Mediterranean Sea. MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2024; 198:106497. [PMID: 38631226 DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2024.106497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2024] [Revised: 04/05/2024] [Accepted: 04/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024]
Abstract
Discharge of gas-rich brines fuels productive chemosynthetic ecosystems in the deep sea. In these salty, methanic and sulfidic brines, microbial communities adapt to specific niches along the physicochemical gradients. However, the molecular mechanisms that underpin these adaptations are not fully known. Using metagenomics, we investigated the dense (∼106 cell ml-1) microbial communities that occupy small deep-sea brine pools found in the Southeastern Mediterranean Sea (1150 m water depth, ∼22 °C, ∼60 PSU salinity, sulfide, methane, ammonia reaching millimolar levels, and oxygen usually depleted), reaching high productivity rates of 685 μg C L-1 d-1 ex-situ. We curated 266 metagenome-assembled genomes of bacteria and archaea from the several pools and adjacent sediment-water interface, highlighting the dominance of a single Sulfurimonas, which likely fuels its autotrophy using sulfide oxidation or inorganic sulfur disproportionation. This lineage may be dominant in its niche due to genome streamlining, limiting its metabolic repertoire, particularly by using a single variant of sulfide: quinone oxidoreductase. These primary producers co-exist with ANME-2c archaea that catalyze the anaerobic oxidation of methane. Other lineages can degrade the necromass aerobically (Halomonas and Alcanivorax), or anaerobically through fermentation of macromolecules (e.g., Caldatribacteriota, Bipolaricaulia, Chloroflexota, etc). These low-abundance organisms likely support the autotrophs, providing energy-rich H2, and vital organics such as vitamin B12.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxim Rubin-Blum
- National Institute of Oceanography, Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research, Haifa, Israel; The Department of Marine Biology, Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
| | - Yizhaq Makovsky
- The Dr. Moses Strauss Department of Marine Geosciences, Charney School of Marine Sciences , University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel; The Hatter Department of Marine Technologies, Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Eyal Rahav
- National Institute of Oceanography, Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research, Haifa, Israel
| | - Natalia Belkin
- National Institute of Oceanography, Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research, Haifa, Israel
| | - Gilad Antler
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Be'er Sheva, Israel; The Interuniversity Institute for Marine Sciences, Eilat, Israel
| | - Guy Sisma-Ventura
- National Institute of Oceanography, Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research, Haifa, Israel
| | - Barak Herut
- National Institute of Oceanography, Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research, Haifa, Israel; The Dr. Moses Strauss Department of Marine Geosciences, Charney School of Marine Sciences , University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
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2
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Duchâtellier G, Oehlert AM, Shernisky H, Pollier CGL, Swart PK, Howes B, Purkis SJ. Sedimentary porewaters record regional tectonic and climate events that perturbed a deep-sea brine pool in the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 912:168804. [PMID: 38036117 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.168804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Revised: 11/20/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023]
Abstract
Brine pools in deep-sea environments provide unique perspectives into planetary and geological processes, extremophile microbial communities, and sedimentary records. The NEOM Brine Pool Complex was the first deep-sea brine pool system found in the Gulf of Aqaba, representing a significant extension of the geographical range and depositional setting of Red Sea brine pools. Here, we use a combination of brine pool samples collected via cast using a conductivity, temperature, depth instrument (CTD), as well as interstitial porewaters extracted from a sediment core collected in the NEOM Brine Pool to characterize the chemical composition and subsurface evolution of the brine. New results indicate that the NEOM brines and the subsurface porewaters may originate from different sources. Elemental concentrations suggest the brines in the NEOM pool are likely derived from dissolution of sub-seabed evaporites. In contrast, the sedimentary porewaters appear to have been influenced by periodic turbidite flows, generated either by earthquakes, submarine landslides, or flash floods, in which normal marine waters from the overlying Red Sea became entrained, periodically disturbing the chemistry of the brine pool. Thus, sediment porewaters beneath brine pools may record transient and dynamic changes in these deep marine depositional environments, reflecting the interplay between climate, tectonics, and sedimentation patterns along a rapidly urbanizing coastline. In concert, new results from NEOM extend the range and chemical constraints on Red Sea Brine Pools and highlight the dynamic interplay between Red Sea Deep water, dissolving evaporites, turbidites, and subsurface fluids that produce these unique depositional environments which host microbial life at the edge of habitability. In concert with sedimentological indicators, the chemistry of porewaters beneath deep-sea brine pools may present detailed records of natural hazards arising from interactions between the atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, and anthroposphere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaëlle Duchâtellier
- Department of Marine Geosciences, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA
| | - Amanda M Oehlert
- Department of Marine Geosciences, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA.
| | - Hannah Shernisky
- Department of Marine Geosciences, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA
| | - Clément G L Pollier
- Department of Marine Geosciences, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA
| | - Peter K Swart
- Department of Marine Geosciences, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA
| | - Bolton Howes
- Department of Marine Geosciences, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA
| | - Sam J Purkis
- Department of Marine Geosciences, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, USA
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Minch B, Chakraborty M, Purkis S, Rodrigue M, Moniruzzaman M. Active prokaryotic and eukaryotic viral ecology across spatial scale in a deep-sea brine pool. ISME COMMUNICATIONS 2024; 4:ycae084. [PMID: 39021441 PMCID: PMC11252502 DOI: 10.1093/ismeco/ycae084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2024] [Revised: 05/03/2024] [Accepted: 06/12/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024]
Abstract
Deep-sea brine pools represent rare, extreme environments, providing unique insight into the limits of life on Earth, and by analogy, the plausibility of life beyond it. A distinguishing feature of many brine pools is presence of thick microbial mats that develop at the brine-seawater interface. While these bacterial and archaeal communities have received moderate attention, viruses and their host interactions in these environments remain underexplored. To bridge this knowledge gap, we leveraged metagenomic and metatranscriptomic data from three distinct zones within the NEOM brine pool system (Gulf of Aqaba) to reveal the active viral ecology around the pools. We report a remarkable diversity and activity of viruses infecting microbial hosts in this environment, including giant viruses, RNA viruses, jumbo phages, and Polinton-like viruses. Many of these form distinct clades-suggesting presence of untapped viral diversity in this ecosystem. Brine pool viral communities exhibit zone-specific differences in infection strategy-with lysogeny dominating the bacterial mat further away from the pool's center. We linked viruses to metabolically important prokaryotes-including association between a jumbo phage and a key manganese-oxidizing and arsenic-metabolizing bacterium. These foundational results illuminate the role of viruses in modulating brine pool microbial communities and biogeochemistry through revealing novel viral diversity, host associations, and spatial heterogeneity in viral dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin Minch
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, United States
| | - Morgan Chakraborty
- Department of Marine Geosciences, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, United States
| | - Sam Purkis
- Department of Marine Geosciences, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, United States
| | | | - Mohammad Moniruzzaman
- Department of Marine Biology and Ecology, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149, United States
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4
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Elbehery AHA, Beason E, Siam R. Metagenomic profiling of antibiotic resistance genes in Red Sea brine pools. Arch Microbiol 2023; 205:195. [PMID: 37061654 DOI: 10.1007/s00203-023-03531-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2022] [Revised: 03/19/2023] [Accepted: 03/31/2023] [Indexed: 04/17/2023]
Abstract
Antibiotic resistance (AR) is an alarming global health concern, causing an annual death rate of more than 35,000 deaths in the US. AR is a natural phenomenon, reported in several pristine environments. In this study, we report AR in pristine Red Sea deep brine pools. Antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) were detected for several drug classes with tetracycline and macrolide resistance being the most abundant. As expected, ARGs abundance increased in accordance with the level of human impact with pristine Red Sea samples having the lowest mean ARG level followed by estuary samples, while activated sludge samples showed a significantly higher ARG level. ARG hierarchical clustering grouped drug classes for which resistance was detected in Atlantis II Deep brine pool independent of the rest of the samples. ARG abundance was significantly lower in the Discovery Deep brine pool. A correlation between integrons and ARGs abundance in brine pristine samples could be detected, while insertion sequences and plasmids showed a correlation with ARGs abundance in human-impacted samples not seen in brine pristine samples. This suggests different roles of distinct mobile genetic elements (MGEs) in ARG distribution in pristine versus human-impacted sites. Additionally, we showed the presence of mobile antibiotic resistance genes in the Atlantis II brine pool as evidenced by the co-existence of integrases and plasmid replication proteins on the same contigs harboring predicted multidrug-resistant efflux pumps. This study addresses the role of non-pathogenic environmental bacteria as a silent reservoir for ARGs, and the possible horizontal gene transfer mechanism mediating ARG acquisition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali H A Elbehery
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Sadat City, Sadat City, Egypt.
| | - Elisabeth Beason
- University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Basseterre, West Indies, Saint Kitts and Nevis
| | - Rania Siam
- Department of Biology, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Cairo, Egypt.
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5
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Renn D, Shepard L, Vancea A, Karan R, Arold ST, Rueping M. Novel Enzymes From the Red Sea Brine Pools: Current State and Potential. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:732856. [PMID: 34777282 PMCID: PMC8578733 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.732856] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2021] [Accepted: 10/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The Red Sea is a marine environment with unique chemical characteristics and physical topographies. Among the various habitats offered by the Red Sea, the deep-sea brine pools are the most extreme in terms of salinity, temperature and metal contents. Nonetheless, the brine pools host rich polyextremophilic bacterial and archaeal communities. These microbial communities are promising sources for various classes of enzymes adapted to harsh environments - extremozymes. Extremozymes are emerging as novel biocatalysts for biotechnological applications due to their ability to perform catalytic reactions under harsh biophysical conditions, such as those used in many industrial processes. In this review, we provide an overview of the extremozymes from different Red Sea brine pools and discuss the overall biotechnological potential of the Red Sea proteome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dominik Renn
- KAUST Catalysis Center (KCC), Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, RWTH Aachen, Aachen, Germany
| | - Lera Shepard
- KAUST Catalysis Center (KCC), Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Alexandra Vancea
- Computational Bioscience Research Center (CBRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Ram Karan
- KAUST Catalysis Center (KCC), Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Stefan T. Arold
- Computational Bioscience Research Center (CBRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
- Centre de Biologie Structurale, CNRS, INSERM, Université de Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Magnus Rueping
- KAUST Catalysis Center (KCC), Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
- Institute for Experimental Molecular Imaging (ExMI), University Clinic, RWTH Aachen, Aachen, Germany
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6
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Fodelianakis S, Washburne AD, Bourquin M, Pramateftaki P, Kohler TJ, Styllas M, Tolosano M, De Staercke V, Schön M, Busi SB, Brandani J, Wilmes P, Peter H, Battin TJ. Microdiversity characterizes prevalent phylogenetic clades in the glacier-fed stream microbiome. ISME JOURNAL 2021; 16:666-675. [PMID: 34522009 PMCID: PMC8857233 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-021-01106-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2020] [Revised: 08/14/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Glacier-fed streams (GFSs) are extreme and rapidly vanishing ecosystems, and yet they harbor diverse microbial communities. Although our understanding of the GFS microbiome has recently increased, we do not know which microbial clades are ecologically successful in these ecosystems, nor do we understand potentially underlying mechanisms. Ecologically successful clades should be more prevalent across GFSs compared to other clades, which should be reflected as clade-wise distinctly low phylogenetic turnover. However, methods to assess such patterns are currently missing. Here we developed and applied a novel analytical framework, “phyloscore analysis”, to identify clades with lower spatial phylogenetic turnover than other clades in the sediment microbiome across twenty GFSs in New Zealand. These clades constituted up to 44% and 64% of community α-diversity and abundance, respectively. Furthermore, both their α-diversity and abundance increased as sediment chlorophyll a decreased, corroborating their ecological success in GFS habitats largely devoid of primary production. These clades also contained elevated levels of putative microdiversity than others, which could potentially explain their high prevalence in GFSs. This hitherto unknown microdiversity may be threatened as glaciers shrink, urging towards further genomic and functional exploration of the GFS microbiome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stilianos Fodelianakis
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | | | - Massimo Bourquin
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Paraskevi Pramateftaki
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Tyler J Kohler
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Michail Styllas
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Matteo Tolosano
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Vincent De Staercke
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Martina Schön
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Susheel Bhanu Busi
- Systems Ecology Research Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Jade Brandani
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Paul Wilmes
- Systems Ecology Research Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Hannes Peter
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Tom J Battin
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland.
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7
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Fine-scale metabolic discontinuity in a stratified prokaryote microbiome of a Red Sea deep halocline. THE ISME JOURNAL 2021; 15:2351-2365. [PMID: 33649556 PMCID: PMC8319295 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-021-00931-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2020] [Accepted: 02/08/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Deep-sea hypersaline anoxic basins are polyextreme environments in the ocean's interior characterized by the high density of brines that prevents mixing with the overlaying seawater, generating sharp chemoclines and redoxclines up to tens of meters thick that host a high concentration of microbial communities. Yet, a fundamental understanding of how such pycnoclines shape microbial life and the associated biogeochemical processes at a fine scale, remains elusive. Here, we applied high-precision sampling of the brine-seawater transition interface in the Suakin Deep, located at 2770 m in the central Red Sea, to reveal previously undocumented fine-scale community structuring and succession of metabolic groups along a salinity gradient only 1 m thick. Metagenomic profiling at a 10-cm-scale resolution highlighted spatial organization of key metabolic pathways and corresponding microbial functional units, emphasizing the prominent role and significance of salinity and oxygen in shaping their ecology. Nitrogen cycling processes are especially affected by the redoxcline with ammonia oxidation processes being taxa and layers specific, highlighting also the presence of novel microorganisms, such as novel Thaumarchaeota and anammox, adapted to the changing conditions of the chemocline. The findings render the transition zone as a critical niche for nitrogen cycling, with complementary metabolic networks, in turn underscoring the biogeochemical complexity of deep-sea brines.
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8
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Liu Y, Huang YH, Lü H, Li H, Li YW, Mo CH, Cai QY. Persistent contamination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and phthalates linked to the shift of microbial function in urban river sediments. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2021; 414:125416. [PMID: 33662795 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.125416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2020] [Revised: 02/10/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Urban rivers were heavily polluted, which resulted in blackening and odorization (i.e., black-odor rivers). Nevertheless, very limited information is available on sediment contamination levels of black-odor rivers and their linkage to the patterns of microbial functional genes. This study investigated distribution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and phthalates (PAEs) and their linkages to bacterial community and related functional genes in river sediments. The results demonstrate that higher average levels of ∑16PAHs (1405 μg/kg, dry weight) and ∑6PAEs (7120 μg/kg) were observed in sediments from heavy black-odor rivers than the moderate ones (∑16PAHs: 462 μg/kg; ∑6PAEs: 2470 μg/kg). The taxon composition and diversities of bacterial community in sediments varied with significantly lower diversity indices in heavy black-odor rivers than moderate ones. Sediments from heavy black-odor rivers enriched certain PAH and PAE degrading bacteria and genes. Unfortunately, PAH and PAE contamination demonstrated negative influences on nitrogen and phosphorus metabolism related bacteria and function genes but significant positive influences on certain sulfur metabolism related bacterial taxa and sulfur reduction gene, which might cause nitrogen and phosphorus accumulation and black-odor phenomenon in heavy black-odor rivers. This study highlights PAH and PAE contamination in urban rivers may shift bacterial community and detrimentally affect their ecological functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue Liu
- Guangdong Provincial Research Center for Environment Pollution Control and Remediation Materials, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Yu-Hong Huang
- Guangdong Provincial Research Center for Environment Pollution Control and Remediation Materials, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Huixiong Lü
- College of Natural Resources and Environment, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Hui Li
- Guangdong Provincial Research Center for Environment Pollution Control and Remediation Materials, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Yan-Wen Li
- Guangdong Provincial Research Center for Environment Pollution Control and Remediation Materials, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Ce-Hui Mo
- Guangdong Provincial Research Center for Environment Pollution Control and Remediation Materials, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
| | - Quan-Ying Cai
- Guangdong Provincial Research Center for Environment Pollution Control and Remediation Materials, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China.
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9
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Abou Khalil C, Prince VL, Prince RC, Greer CW, Lee K, Zhang B, Boufadel MC. Occurrence and biodegradation of hydrocarbons at high salinities. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 762:143165. [PMID: 33131842 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.143165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2020] [Revised: 10/13/2020] [Accepted: 10/15/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Hypersaline environments are found around the world, above and below ground, and many are exposed to hydrocarbons on a continuous or a frequent basis. Some surface hypersaline environments are exposed to hydrocarbons because they have active petroleum seeps while others are exposed because of oil exploration and production, or nearby human activities. Many oil reservoirs overlie highly saline connate water, and some national oil reserves are stored in salt caverns. Surface hypersaline ecosystems contain consortia of halophilic and halotolerant microorganisms that decompose organic compounds including hydrocarbons, and subterranean ones are likely to contain the same. However, the rates and extents of hydrocarbon biodegradation are poorly understood in such ecosystems. Here we describe hypersaline environments potentially or likely to become contaminated with hydrocarbons, including perennial and transient environments above and below ground, and discuss what is known about the microbes degrading hydrocarbons and the extent of their activities. We also discuss what limits the microbial hydrocarbon degradation in hypersaline environments and whether there are opportunities for inhibiting (oil storage) or stimulating (oil spills) such biodegradation as the situation requires.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charbel Abou Khalil
- Center for Natural Resources, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ 07102, USA
| | | | | | - Charles W Greer
- National Research Council Canada, Energy, Mining and Environment Research Centre, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Kenneth Lee
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Ecosystem Science, Ottawa, ON K1A 0E6, Canada
| | - Baiyu Zhang
- Northern Region Persistent Organic Pollution Control (NRPOP) Laboratory, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL A1B 3X5, Canada
| | - Michel C Boufadel
- Center for Natural Resources, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ 07102, USA.
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10
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Kohler TJ, Peter H, Fodelianakis S, Pramateftaki P, Styllas M, Tolosano M, de Staercke V, Schön M, Busi SB, Wilmes P, Washburne A, Battin TJ. Patterns and Drivers of Extracellular Enzyme Activity in New Zealand Glacier-Fed Streams. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:591465. [PMID: 33329472 PMCID: PMC7711088 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.591465] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2020] [Accepted: 10/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Glacier-fed streams (GFSs) exhibit near-freezing temperatures, variable flows, and often high turbidities. Currently, the rapid shrinkage of mountain glaciers is altering the delivery of meltwater, solutes, and particulate matter to GFSs, with unknown consequences for their ecology. Benthic biofilms dominate microbial life in GFSs, and play a major role in their biogeochemical cycling. Mineralization is likely an important process for microbes to meet elemental budgets in these systems due to commonly oligotrophic conditions, and extracellular enzymes retained within the biofilm enable the degradation of organic matter and acquisition of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P). The measurement and comparison of these extracellular enzyme activities (EEA) can in turn provide insight into microbial elemental acquisition effort relative to environmental availability. To better understand how benthic biofilm communities meet resource demands, and how this might shift as glaciers vanish under climate change, we investigated biofilm EEA in 20 GFSs varying in glacier influence from New Zealand’s Southern Alps. Using turbidity and distance to the glacier snout normalized for glacier size as proxies for glacier influence, we found that bacterial abundance (BA), chlorophyll a (Chl a), extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), and total EEA per gram of sediment increased with decreasing glacier influence. Yet, when normalized by BA, EPS decreased with decreasing glacier influence, Chl a still increased, and there was no relationship with total EEA. Based on EEA ratios, we found that the majority of GFS microbial communities were N-limited, with a few streams of different underlying bedrock geology exhibiting P-limitation. Cell-specific C-acquiring EEA was positively related to the ratio of Chl a to BA, presumably reflecting the utilization of algal exudates. Meanwhile, cell-specific N-acquiring EEA were positively correlated with the concentration of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), and both N- and P-acquiring EEA increased with greater cell-specific EPS. Overall, our results reveal greater glacier influence to be negatively related to GFS biofilm biomass parameters, and generally associated with greater microbial N demand. These results help to illuminate the ecology of GFS biofilms, along with their biogeochemical response to a shifting habitat template with ongoing climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler J Kohler
- Stream Biofilm and Ecosystem Research Laboratory, School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hannes Peter
- Stream Biofilm and Ecosystem Research Laboratory, School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Stilianos Fodelianakis
- Stream Biofilm and Ecosystem Research Laboratory, School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Paraskevi Pramateftaki
- Stream Biofilm and Ecosystem Research Laboratory, School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Michail Styllas
- Stream Biofilm and Ecosystem Research Laboratory, School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Matteo Tolosano
- Stream Biofilm and Ecosystem Research Laboratory, School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Vincent de Staercke
- Stream Biofilm and Ecosystem Research Laboratory, School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Martina Schön
- Stream Biofilm and Ecosystem Research Laboratory, School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Susheel Bhanu Busi
- Systems Ecology Research Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Paul Wilmes
- Systems Ecology Research Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Alex Washburne
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, United States.,Selva Analytics, LLC, Bozeman, MT, United States
| | - Tom J Battin
- Stream Biofilm and Ecosystem Research Laboratory, School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
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